Episode 2: School transformation in Al Ofoq Al Jadeed School and implementation of FIRST-ADLX

Impact of FIRST-ADLX on teachers and how they changed into better educators

The impact of ROOTS Soft Skills program, of wave I on teachers that consequently affected learners’ performance positively, made me more determined to accomplish my mission transferring FIRSTedu ADLX (wave II), in which my role now was more challenging, for I had to transfer FIRST-ADLX to all educators at AL Ofoq Al Jadeed School and to follow-up to check on the results of my work. This was done over four transfers for all sixty educators who could impressively adopt the mindset of true educators and equip themselves with the twenty-first-century skills needed for their students. Here are some photos of the four transfers.  

Teachers of Group I, interacting and greatly engaged – Sept. 2018

Micro Facilitation of Group II Teachers- June 2019

Celebrating with Group III -July 2019

Teachers of Group IV, enjoying TIC TAC TOC game- Sept. 2019

To ensure the fruitfulness of the given workshops, the follow up was mandatory. The follow-up plan with group one was as such: first, teachers prepare session design; second, FIRST-ADLX Master Facilitator (like me) checks and sends feedback; third, teachers take notes and feedback to facilitate the session; last,  FIRST-ADLX Master Facilitator attends the session and then holds coaching sessions with the teachers and after that, an action plan must be set for any repair. Some teachers needed more follow up than others.

Coaching session with Mrs. Rana after attending her facilitation

What pleases the most is how teachers in almost no time could understand the importance of the “Attitude” as a priority in the Learning Outcomes and the Parallel Learning Outcomes and this is mentioned in their comments and reflected in their session designs as well. 

See the comment of Mrs.Rasha, a physics teacher: 

L.O set by Mrs. Lina, English language teacher and for her session design also assures the same belief.

As for the three other groups, the follow-up strategy was different. Here, I had to resort to the coordinators for some assistance, and they did play an essential role. They edited the designed sessions and attended the facilitation and the coaching sessions with the ROOTS consultant, whose supervision and support was ever-present especially while setting an action plan for future execution. 

It’s worth mentioning that what enriched the teachers’ eXperience while applying FIRST-ADLX Framework is that peer teachers started to support each other by attending each other’s sessions, giving feedback, exchanging thoughts and ideas about various teaching methods. This cooperative spirit was dominant among all teachers irrespective of the teaching subject. The image of the English language teacher Mrs. Eman and the physics teacher Mrs. Farah discussing different openers in the teachers’ lounge never leaves my mind. This image is still fresh in my mind and the balloon popping opener which Mrs. Eman explained was applied in the physics class and greatly liked by the students. Utilizing games as a method of learning has become a trend after wave II. Gamification has proven to offer tremendous opportunities to learners, triggering them physically and mentally. This is particularly needed for today’s generation that is more engaged in video games rather than physical activities. 

Our next episode will be about how teachers have applied FIRST-ADLX at Al Ofoq Al Jadeed School.

Prepared by: Ms. Hanan Shaker – Math Teacher & Supervisor, FIRST-ADLX Master Facilitator.

Ms. Lina Zamzam English language teacher and supervisor at Al Ofoq Al Jadeed school